Nathan Lyon has had some harsh treatment in the past from the selectors, but he is lucky they have shown tremendous faith by retaining him for Tuesday’s first Test against India.
I am a big supporter of Lyon and believe he has the ability, technique and temperament to become an elite Test spinner.
His returns this year, however, have been paltry and if again he is toothless this week Australia should considering sending him back to Shield cricket.
Over his past nine Tests, Lyon has grabbed just 26 wickets at the lofty average of 47. He was particularly ineffective against Pakistan in the UAE in spin-friendly conditions when his side desperately needed him to lead the way.
Granted, Stephen O’Keefe was similarly benign in the first Test of that series but he was battling the nerves of a debut Test appearance.
As the senior spinner, with considerable experience behind him at the highest level, Lyon failed in his role. He did not vary his pace enough, or his angles on the crease, which made him predictable and an easy target for the spin-adept Pakistan batsmen.
This week he will encounter another side with a raft of players who are most at ease against slow bowling.
The docile nature of Adelaide’s drop-in pitch means that once the shine goes off the ball for Australia’s quicks, Lyon’s role will be huge. He must show improvement or Australia should give strong thought to replacing him with O’Keefe for the second Test at the Gabba.
It would be a somewhat tough call on Lyon given his brilliant record in Brisbane, where he has 15 wickets at 22 from three Tests. But it might not be a bad thing for him either.
It is easy to overlook the fact that Lyon has only just turned 27 years old, which makes him a relative pup in spin terms. He has done wonderfully well to have 115 Test wickets to his name by this age. Most finger spinners do not reach their peak until they are in their 30s.
The world’s best all-round off spinner, Saeed Ajmal, was almost five years older than Lyon is now when he made his Test debut. England’s recently-retired spin wizard Graeme Swann was pushing 30 by the time he earned his first Test cap.
Arguably the most effective Test spinner in the world right now, Rangana Herath, is in career best form despite the fact he’ll turn 37 in a few months. Pakistan’s new spin sensation Zulfiqar Babar, who recently destroyed Australia, will be 36 years old this week and is only just beginning his Test career.
Lyon could still be playing Test cricket in a decade’s time. Dropping him now would not ruin his career and may in fact propel him to far greater heights.
Lyon is renowned for having an admirable attitude and has been graceful the past two times he was dropped, both of which were harsh calls.
That much was clear from the vision of Lyon beaming widely and clapping on Ashton Agar from the stands during his debut innings, despite the teenage wildcard having taken his spot for last year’s Ashes opener in unfair circumstances.
Lyon remains Australia’s best long-term spin option. He must prove this week, though, that he does not need a spell at domestic level.
Bearfax
Guest
Keeps improving Matth. As long as he does that he deserves his place. Unlike one or two of the batsmen
Matth
Guest
Well there you go. Lyon is safe
lenny
Guest
O`Keefe`s from NSW and he has plenty of potential and natural ability like Steve Smith showed in his first 10 tests when he couldn`t hold a bat or land a ball on a decent length to save his life, but WOW look at SMITHY BLOSSUM now after ACA persisted with him for so long he eventaully had to come good .So of course O` Keefe will be ushered in and given maximum time (10 15 tests) to find his feet, and will no doubt play 100 tests...Punt Lyon, Punt Johnson, bring in young guns Stephen O’Keefe, and Mitchell Starc......
Bearfax
Guest
I like it. I suppose you mean in the context that he is always nipping at your heels and never giving you peace, Tom
Armchair Expert
Guest
Correct TJ, your comments are too logical for our selectors to consider, Lyon could still sing the victory song as 12th man.
Bearfax
Guest
WLC, I think its important not to use examples like 'your father' when discussing test players. There are some who are just exceptionally gifted. Warne was one of those. Muri, Bradman, Lara, Tendulkar, Sobers, Davidson, Miller, Hobbs...even Hayden. Players who show prodigious talent from an early age and become giants of the game. But they are few and far between and most players have to work up to a test level over years of first class cricket, and often take beyond 5 years to do so through trial and error. Most top spin bowlers take years to develop as shown with Lyon. Expecting them to take on a test position at 21-22 is generally unrealistic. Its why I am critical of using such players as the next great hope, like they are doing to Mitch Marsh. Players like Boyce, Zampa, Muirhead, Agar are still learning their trades and their averages testify to the fact that they are far from ready for the next step up. One of them may be a Warne and suddenly burst on the scene but its most unlikely but even Warne was 22 when he started test cricket and it wasnt until that famous Manchester test 18 months later, with that Gatting dismissal, that we knew we had a champion bowler. Until then he was averaging about 31, good but not anywhere like what was to come. I would suggest, especially with spin bowlers that patience is required and let the Boyces, Zampas, Agars and Muirheads develop in Shield cricket and improve their averages. For me there are only three options Australia has at this point for spin bowlers as I've already noted. They are SOK, Lyon and Ahmed...the rest are streets behind at this stage.
Don Freo
Guest
Wouldn't mind seeing Sandhu do that swap. The commentators in the Matador said the NSW boys think he is a genius with spin in the nets.
TJ
Guest
So true Jarijari, wouldn't be surprised to see a nice green tinge to the wicket tomorrow morning!
Jarijari
Guest
Yep, TJ, makes a lot of sense. And the curators aren't going to turn it on for the Indian spinners.
Jarijari
Guest
Thanks Don but not well enough. Spot on Armchair. Funky Miller had a category of his own, saw an opening, switched to off-spin and made his debut at 34. Should leave the stats to Kersi. He could probably break it down to how many he got with arm ball, blue hair etc.
TJ
Guest
Maybe its just me but.......why wouldn't we be picking the best 4 genuine bowlers we have regardless of if that is spin or pace? So what if we have Marsh and Watson bowling medium fast as all rounders? If Lyon is not in the top 4 bowlers we have then why play him? All this talk of having to play a spinner is absolute rubbish. Imagine the great pace bowling team of Windies in the 70's and 80's picking a spinner just because, at the expense of one the quick men? I would pick Johnson, Starc, Hazlewood and Siddle and leave Lyon out. People are saying send him back to shield but he has never performed exceptionally well there and I cant see that changing regardless of how long he stays there for. India play spinners much better than pace so why give them what they want? 4 genuine quicks and 2 medium fast bowlers would certainly take 20 wickets in my opinion. And until someone is performing at shield level at a exceptional level or one of the quicks are not performing, then don't change it. For example, if Siddle struggles at Adelaide, bring in Sayers or SOK or the best performing bowler from the Shield, Spinner or pace. Surely this is just too logical thinking.....
TheCunningLinguistic
Guest
Fair point, Don, though I did hedge my bets by prefacing it with "I would say...". Until O'Keefe has an extended run of Tests, I can only really compare them on Shield form. And in that scenario, I stand by my call: undeniably.
Armchair Expert
Guest
Don't forget Colin Miller's 69 test wickets@26, I realize he also bowled medium fast to start with but he would of taken around 90% of his wickets with off spin.
Pom in Oz
Roar Guru
What the the... Nice one Sfl. Brought back some memories...
Don Freo
Guest
Now that's a good cricket comment. Well covered JJ.
Jarijari
Guest
Surprised to see Lyon and O'Keefe generating so much passion. But having another look at it, Ronan, you probably got them worked up by saying Lyon could be around for another 10 years. Perish the thought. Yeh, he's been handy, but probably inferior to Mallett, Yardley and May, our only other quality offies in the past 50 years, with Matthews a good batting all-rounder. Finger lefties don't measure up, Ray Bright somehow played 25 Tests 53 wkts @ 41, Tom Hogan 7-15-47. Then there's the part-timer skippers, Clarke and Border, both sound on their day. O'Keefe probably deserves another chance at some stage after the one Test. Here's the figures for the offies Tests Wkts Ave Econ rate Mallett 38 132 29.84 2.36 Yardley 33 126 31.82 2.68 May 24 75 34.74 2.37 Lyon 35 115 36.80 3.08 Clearly, though, we want another leggie. If Lyon does cop a hiding in the first two Tests -- and we're not really expecting him to clean up the Indians -- the selectors might go for Ahmed on his two shield six-fors at the MCG this year, against Tasmania and NSW. My pick for the future is Muirhead, who gets good turn and has benefited from Warne's tutoring. We'll probably only see him in BBL this summer. He's only 21 but will need to go interstate and play some shield next season if the Vics stick with Ahmed.
Shortfineleg
Guest
Well you didn't wake up this morning 'cause you didn't go to bed You were watching the whites of your eyes turn red The calendar on your wall is ticking the days off You've been reading some old letters You smile and think how much you've changed All the money in the world couldn't buy back those days You pull back the curtains, and the sun burns into your eyes You watch a plane flying across a clear blue sky This is the day your life will surely change This is the day when things fall into place You could've done anything, if you'd wanted And all your friends and family think that you're lucky But the side of you they'll never see Is when you're left alone with the memories That hold your life together like glue You pull back the curtains, and the sun burns into your eyes You watch a plane flying across a clear blue sky This is the day your life will surely change This is the day when things fall into place This is the day your life will surely change This is the day your life will surely change This is the day your life will surely change
Shortfineleg
Guest
Oh, G_d, not again. Q. What the difference between a computer and the Donkey? A. You only have to punch information into a computer once. If someone averages 27 over a 10 year career, that what they are likely to do. Like bog ordinary Shaun with his middle 30s average over 13 years. Reid and Whitney would have averaged in single figures, and bear no comparison. Why do you feel the need to continuously tell porkies?
Don Freo
Guest
Aah...but Richie never got to lead the team song! What do you think I am comparing? Their personal qualities or their careers so far? As a batsman, by the way, Benaud did not set the world ablaze. He would have received Maxwell type criticism if we had social media then.
Don Freo
Guest
Stuart, and his father Terry, had white line fever. Perhaps the most reported of all grade cricketers.